Sebastopol, CA--Since 2007, applications have dominated the Facebook domain. From games to blogs to photos and everything in between, there are applications for just about every event or circumstance imaginable. But if you happen to find a niche that's missing, how do you go about building your own application? With FBML Essentials (O'Reilly, $29.99) you'll learn how to build it quickly using the Facebook Markup Language (FBML) and other easy-to-use tools in the site's framework. If you can develop a website with HTML, writing a Facebook application with the help of this book will be a breeze.
Of course, Facebook is not just another website. Any applications you write for it will have a potential audience of 16 million dedicated users. It's not just another social networking site, either. Under the surface, Facebook is pretty sophisticated, with a development toolkit that includes it's own modified version of HTML--FBML--to customize the look and feel of your Facebook applications.
According to author Jesse Stay, this book is essential for anyone who wants to be a part of Facebook's future. "FBML is only the beginning of your adventure in Facebook Development. Reviewing and knowing what tags are available will help save you time as you develop on Facebook, as well as headaches as new design changes emerge. This book will be extremely helpful in achieving that knowledge you need to get started."
With FBML Essentials, you'll not only learn how to get started, you will also get a complete reference on every FBML tag Facebook has ever written, with examples of how each tag works and advice on the best ways to use these tags in your code. This reference will provide the information you need as you delve into the world of Facebook application development. As Stay says, "Having a reference [you] can quickly turn to, with tested examples and pictures, should be helpful for any developer trying to learn the essentials of FBML and the Facebook platform."
In this book, you will find:
- A walkthrough of a sample Facebook application
- Design rules for using images, CSS, JavaScript, and forms
- Specific chapters on tags--authorization tags, logic tags, user/group
- tags, profile-specific tags, and more
- Messaging and alerts using FBML
- How to create forms with FBML
- Facebook navigation tips
- Information regarding notifications and requests
- Dynamic FBML attributes, including MockAJAX
- How to test your FBML code
- An introduction to FBJS, Facebook's version of JavaScript
If you want to try your hand at writing a Facebook application, you'll have a willing audience, an easy-to-use toolkit, and the perfect guide to get you started. FBML Essentials will help you take your idea from conception to working application in no time.
Jesse Stay, The "Social" Geek, runs his own Social Media consulting and development business called Stay N' Alive Productions, LLC, and has consulted for some of the top 100 applications on Facebook. Within just 2 months, he successfully sold his first Facebook application that he wrote in just a week. He is the author of I'm on Facebook -- Now What???, a book targeted towards helping individuals and business owners better manage their lives through Facebook. You can follow him on his blog, http://staynalive.com.
Additional Resources:
For more information about the book, including table of contents, index, author bios, and cover graphic, see the catalog page for FBML Essentials
FBML Essentials
Jesse Stay
ISBN: 9780596519186, 188 pages, $29.99 USD
order@oreilly.com
1-800-998-9938
1-707-827-7000
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